The present invention relates generally to the field of social expression cards, and more particularly to a social expression card with a detachable gift portion.
People like to commemorate important events in people""s lives, such as weddings, anniversaries, and birthdays, and show their appreciation and affection for others by sending gifts and social expression cards, such as greeting cards. Most greeting cards sent today are mass produced cards purchased in retail establishments such as card shops, gift shops, grocery stores and the like. Gifts, of course, may be purchased at any of a number of retail establishments.
It is not always easy to find a mass produced card that expresses the right sentiment. Additionally, there is a desire on the part of most people to personalize their gifts and greeting cards. Most people write a personal greeting in the mass produced cards that they send to others. Recently, there have been introduced card vending machines or kiosks that enable purchasers to create personalized printed social expression cards. Also, there are software packages that enable people to produce cards using personal computers.
In the area of gifts, most people prefer to give a gift that they believe will be meaningful to and appreciated by the recipient. However, a giver may know only generally the wants and needs of a particular recipient. For example, the giver may know that an intended recipient likes music or a particular style of clothing. However, the giver may not know which musical group the recipient likes or whether the recipient would prefer one article of clothing over another. In such instances, the gift certificate from a store that carries goods of the type appreciated by the recipient might be an appropriate gift.
The traditional method of purchasing requires that a person visit one or more retail establishments. Most people like to send a card with a gift. Accordingly, purchasing a gift may require travel to one or more card shops as well as one or more gift or other retail stores in order to find the right combination of a card and gift. In today""s busy world, many people find it difficult to find the time to shop for cards and gifts.
In addition to cards commemorating events such as weddings, anniversaries, and birthdays, many people send holiday greetings to their friends, family members, and business contacts. One popular form of holiday greeting includes a photograph of the sender""s family or children, or of some other thing of importance, such as the family home or pet. While the photograph may simply be enclosed in a conventional holiday greeting, many people like to have the photograph printed as part of the card.
In addition to holiday greeting, many businesses send cards to their clients and customers. These business-type cards may be for the purpose of making an announcement or simply to remind the recipient of the existence or presence of the business. It is fairly common to include a business card or xe2x80x9cRolodexxe2x80x9d card with these business-related cards and announcements.
The present invention provides a social expression card with a detachable gift portion. The card of the present invention includes a first panel that is preferably square or rectangular in shape. A second panel of substantially the same size and shape is connected by a fold line to the first panel. The second panel is foldable over said first panel to form a card. A third panel, which includes a detachable gift portion, is connected by a fold line to the second panel. The third panel is foldable over the second panel to a position in which the detachable portion is hidden between the first and second panels when the second panel is folded over the first panel.
The detachable portion is sized so that it may be carried in a recipient""s wallet, pocketbook, purse, or the like. The detachable portion includes gift indicia. In one embodiment, the gift indicia is a gift certificate. In another embodiment, the gift indicia is a photographic image. The photographic image may be a miniature of a photographic image carried by the first panel. The gift indicia may also comprise a business card, coupon, or other writing or image.
The card of the present invention may be adapted for mailing in a conventional envelope. Alternatively, the card may be in the form of a self-mailer. In the self-mailer embodiment, a sealing flap is connected by a fold line to the first panel. The first panel includes recipient mailing address indicia and the sealing flap includes sender return address indicia.